Mount Diablo is “home” to many of us.  It is visible for over 200 miles from every direction.  It is an icon, a playground, an incredible wild nature area – some of it protected but much of it still privately owned and threatened by development.  That is why we are asking you today to support Save Mount Diablo’s work of preserving, defending and restoring the natural lands on and around the mountain so that we all can continue to enjoy Mount Diablo.

We preserve Mount Diablo – For the past 39 years Save Mount Diablo and our friends and collaborators have expanded preserved lands from less than 7,000 acres to more than 100,000 acres on and around the mountain.  But 80,000 acres are still at risk of being developed. We have nearly met our goal to fund the purchase of Viera – North Peak, a 165 acre property on the slopes of Diablo’s North Peak.  This property, one of the highest in the East Bay with an elevation of 2,300 ft, is incredibly rich with wildlife.  Experts have already confirmed more than 55 rare plants there and the threatened Alameda whipsnake has been spotted on the site as well. We continue to look at purchasing properties, especially while the State is unable to acquire lands to add to the Mount Diablo State Park.  However, many more acres are protected through our land use planning work – defending the mountain.

We defend Mount Diablo – On a weekly basis we monitor 35 different planning agendas and respond to development projects around the mountain that could negatively impact the natural lands, existing open space or wild life corridors. One example: For twenty years Save Mount Diablo and its allies have defended the Tassajara Valley and hills.  These beautiful grasslands stretch east from Danville and San Ramon, north of Dublin and Livermore.  It is an agricultural and open space buffer between preserved open spaces in every direction, linked by Camino Tassajara Road and Tassajara Creek, with headwaters to the north in Mount Diablo State Park and Morgan Territory Regional Preserve.  County residents voted to place the Tassajara Valley outside of the urban growth boundaries in 2006.  Now, a new development plan is being proposed in the valley. The “New Farm” project is an attempt to break the urban growth boundary.  If they are successful, other development proposals in the valley and around the county will follow.  We continue to defend voter-approved urban growth boundaries.

We restore Mount Diablo’s lands – Currently Save Mount Diablo owns nine properties.  Before transferring properties to public agencies, we care for the land by leading volunteer work projects to clean up debris and hazards, improve habitat, and provide trails for recreation.  One example: Marsh Creek is an important wildlife corridor in an area that is almost completely surrounded with preserved land.  With the help of more than 100 volunteers, we removed non-native plants and planted natives on Marsh Creek-IV, a small property with a sublime section of the creek.  Volunteers will continue to weed and water the native plants to encourage the natural habitat and wildlife to flourish again. We continue to acquire new parcels along Marsh Creek and restore the creek’s natural habitat.

We preserve, defend and restore so you can enjoy Mount Diablo – this is your mountain!  Thank you for your continuing support.  Your gift will ensure our preservation work continues so you, and many others like you, now and in the future, can continue to enjoy Mount Diablo’s beauty.

Sincerely,

Ron Brown                                                                  
            Executive Director                                                       

P.S.    Whether you enjoy Mount Diablo when you are hiking, cycling, horseback riding, trail running, birding, painting, photographing, looking at it from your kitchen window, or taking in its breathtaking beauty at the end of that long drive home – this is your mountain. We are grateful for your help in preserving it.  Scott Hein, an SMD Board member and an extraordinary photographer, helps us create note-cards that showcase the beauty of wildflowers on the mountain. For a donation of $250 or more, you’ll receive a set of these special, limited edition note-cards..